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The press notes for Bee Movie indicate that Jerry Seinfeld came up with the title before he had an inkling what the story might be. Having seen the film, I can believe that. As befits something from Seinfeld's pen, the screenplay contains a smatter...

Big came out of nowhere during the summer of 1988 and captured universal raves. More than two decades later, despite indications of dating, it remains a popular motion picture, in large part because it's one the few "body swap" movies - a popular ...

Against all odds, The Big Short works. In fact, “works” is an understatement for what director Adam McKay has achieved with his improbable adaptation of Michael Lewis’ nonfiction book about the 2008 global financial crisis. Writing ...

Body Heat is Lawrence Kasdan's directorial debut. His role behind the camera was earned in large part because of his writing contributions to The Empire Strikes Back and Raiders of the Lost Ark, two of the biggest movies of the early '80s. And, i...

As a dramatic re-creation of the events leading up to the July 2016 ouster of Fox News honcho Roger Ailes, Bombshell is effective cinema. However, for those familiar with the situation (either from reading about it or following it contemporane...

For younger fans of Marvel movies, it may be hard to remember anything that came before the advent of the MCU. For decades, however, studios had been trying to strike gold with Marvel properties in ways to rival the success experienced by Warner B...

Movies like Captain Phillips - taut, white-knuckle thrillers that feature ordinary guys instead of bona fide action heroes - are something of an endangered species. In today's risk-averse movie industry, making an "action" film without an establish...

Spoiler Note: The review reveals the name of a couple of high profile actors who make cameo appearances. I think these are supposed to be surprises, although they’re inconsequential. Nevertheless, if you don’t want to know, don’t re...

Chaplin is Sir Richard Attenborough's account of the life and times of film great Charlie Chaplin. The story picks up in 1894, when Charlie is five, and lasts until 1972, five years before his death in 1977. Along the way, Attenborough gives us g...